Moonlit Destruction
by xXRetrobotXx
Summary: It's been 6 years since Darkmount, and the war is still going with no forseeable ending. Rafael is working to take over for Fowler and new 'bots arrive. But what happens when Knockout takes Raf hostage? And why is that enough to end the war? Primeverse. Rated T for safety.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Hi! Yes, I didn't die. *ducks head sheepishly* Between school and writer's block, I can't figure out what to put in my other stories. But I'm not gonna give up on them! I'm trying to work on them as much as I can. For now, I want to work on something fresh. Hope you enjoy!**

* * *

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

"Five more minutes..."

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

"Shut up already!"

_Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep._

"Holy slag, WHAT!"

He sat up in a hurry, the world coming into a blurry focus. Reaching for the glasses that were always kept at his bedside table, the brunette blinked as his eyes adjusted. He turned to the clock that had attempted to draw him from his slumber. 7:31.

"Scrap!"

He practically leaped out of his bed, ripping off his blue checkered pj pants and throwing on a tan shirt with blue jeans. His shaggy hair ruffled slightly in the whirlwind of motion he was creating. Scooping up a pile of books and the laptop from his desk, the boy froze when his mother's voice rang up the stairs.

"RAFAEL! You're late!"

"So nice of her to notice," he mumbled to himself, slipping on a pair of shoes and closing his bedroom door behind him. Clomping down the slightly uneven stairs, the teen rotated all of his baggage to one arm and grabbed the toast his mother offered him as he ran to the door. "Bye!"

"I want you home after school!" The door closing shut out anything else she might have added, and Raf shook his head. The yellow Urbana sitting in his driveway made him smile. Sunlight reflecting off the glistening paint job illuminated the boy's skin as he got closer.

"Morning, 'Bee," he said quietly, balancing a book that tried to fall out of his grip. The autobot beeped a reply back. Losing his hold on the objects, a few fell to the ground, making a loud clatter. Raf let them fall so he could keep a hand on his laptop. "Scrap."

The sound of an engine made him turn his head as he groped for the books. A tan minivan pulled up to the curb with a familiar face inside. The power to the engine was cut and it died with a small growl. Jack climbed out from the drivers' side.

"Hey Raf, hey 'Bee. How's it going?"

"Good," Raf panted, his fingers straining at the awkward load. "'Bee, could you get the door...?" In answer, Bumblebee popped open his passenger side door. The books were deposited roughly and the laptop was set down on top of them. Wiping his hair out of his eyes, Rafael turned back to Jack and shut the door.

"Where are you headed to?" Raf asked, raising an eyebrow.

"The park. Avery has a playdate with her friends." Jack gestured to the van, and Raf could see Jack's daughter through the tinted window. "Aren't you a bit late for school?"

"Yeah, that's where I'm headed."

"You're a senior now, right?"

Absently, Raf nodded. Bumblebee interjected with a few beeps, reminding Raf of the time. Shaking himself mentally, he said, "Sorry, I gotta run. See you around."

"Bye, Raf," Jack replied, going back to his van. Rafael slid into Bumblebee's driver seat to give the illusion he was driving. As they pulled out, however, Raf saw a flash of red in the rear-view mirror. Not seeing anything when he looked closer, he disregarded it.

-oOo-

He leaned on one elbow with his head resting on his hand. The teacher up front droned on about advanced algebraic equations, boring half the kids to sleep.

"Why do they teach this crap?" a girl muttered. Raf wisely kept his mouth shut, not wanting anyone else to get mad at him for his 'smart-alek responses,' as his mother put it. Glancing at the clock, Raf knew there was only ten minutes left. He shuffled his already-completed homework together with his daily work and shut his notebook.

The noise caught his teacher's attention.

"Mr. Esquivel, are you done with your work?"

"Yes," he said simply.

The teacher raised an eyebrow. "Well then, can you solve this problem?" He gestured to the whiteboard. Raf eyed it and pretended to think for a moment. He had solved the problem in the first five minutes of class.

"'X' is seven and 'Y' is negative three. Proven by the reciprocal of 3/25 used in the equation." Satisfied, he leaned back in his chair. Raf noted the teacher's slightly dumbfounded expression.

"Correct," he mumbled. Returning to the lesson, Raf proceeded to tune out the man again.

-oOo-

Exiting the school, Raf squinted at the bright light. Raised voices made him turn his head. Vince's little brother, who was following in the bully's footsteps, was picking on a young girl. Remembering how Jack had stopped Vince from picking on him, Raf sighed and walked over to the duo.

"Stop," the teen commanded. "Go pick on someone your own size." Due to the fact that the boy was a freshman and Raf towered over him, the boy fled without complaint. Raf left the girl, who didn't say anything.

His mind turning back to Jack, Raf headed for Bumblebee, who had no doubt arrived minutes before the bell had rung. Silently getting in the driver's side, Raf started to wish it could all just be like it used to. Before Sierra and Jack's wedding. Before Miko had been called back to Japan by her parents. Before the newest arrivals had even shown up.

They were two mechs by the names of Mirage and Hound. They were bonded, and 'Bee had to describe that it was basically marriage, in human terms, except that there was a physical link between their sparks. The latter of the two mechs was easy-going and fun to be around. But Mirage was a mech with an attitude problem. Bumblebee had once again explained to Raf that it was because he had been a noble and a tower mech, and high up on the political rankings. But the war had destroyed Cybertron's government, taking everything from him. But the worst part, in Raf's opinion, was that the mech was almost as vain as Knockout.

"_Are you okay_?" asked Bumblebee, jolting Raf from his thoughts.

"Yeah. Just thinking."

"_Well don't think too hard. You might strain something,_" 'Bee joked, drawing a small grin from Raf.

The Urbana slowed as it reached the most recent warehouse the autobots had come to call home. Shortly after the mess of Darkmount had been cleaned up, citizens had been allowed back in the city and Fowler had secured a warehouse in the city for the autobots.

The garage door admitted Bumblebee in and the towering frames of the 'bots caught Raf's attention. Ratchet was standing at the console, like always. Arcee was standing off to one side, conversing with Mirage and Bulkhead. Hound was walking in from the rooms the 'bots recharged in at night. Optimus and Smokescreen pulled in after Bumblebee, returning from a patrol.

Raf hopped out of Bumblebee, and all three of the arriving mechs transformed, making the already small hanger feel even more crowded.

Just then, the console beeped. "Optimus! It's a incoming message, from Ultra Magnus," Ratchet said, locking optics with his commander.

"Put him on the screen," rumbled Optimus, taking a step forward. Both Bumblebee and Smokescreen moved aside to give him some room.

The big screen on the wall flashed on and revealed a picture of Ultra Magnus. The interior of his ship was in the background. Out one of the windows, the inky depths of space was visible.

"Optimus, sir. I am reporting in before we head back," Magnus said, his vocals not quite as deep as the Prime's, but no less noble.

"Good to hear from you, old friend. Were you successful on your search?"

"Affirmative. I currently have Jazz, Prowl, and Ironhide on board with me as we speak." He pushed a button, no doubt setting his ship on autopilot, before moving out of the way. Three unfamiliar mechs stepped into view, making Raf wonder who was who.

"'Ey, Prime! 'Ow's it goin' down thah?" The silver, shorter one was the first to speak. His strange accent rung in Raf's ears.

"Jazz," Optimus acknowledged. "It is good to hear from you. Where have the three of you been residing at for the last megacycle?"

"We were positioned on the fourth moon of the planet Illeria," said the black-and-white mech with the doorwings. To Raf, they looked like the mech was holding them stiffly. From the movements 'Bee and Smokescreen's had done, the boy had figured that the doorwings were used to convey emotions and even instructions.

"Very well, Prowl. Do you have news of any of the others?"

From the names Optimus had already listed, Raf figured that the last mech, a larger, red one, was Ironhide. He had heard Bulkhead talk of this mech before, and he was apparently the autobot's chief weapons technician and a very good shot with practically any gun.

Ironhide shook his head forlornly. "Sorry 'bout that, Prime. Everybot undah our command was shot down in the last battle." His voice had a tint of western-cowboy to Raf.

Optimus dipped his head sadly at the news. Ultra Magnus stepped back into view, visibly taking control of his ship once more.

"We should arrive in two earth weeks," Ultra Magnus informed them. His optic's briefly scanned the warehouse. At Optimus' nod, the commander cut the link, and the screen went black.

"Woohoo!" Smokescreen yelled into the silence that followed the video. "New 'bots!"

"Great," Arcee replied sarcastically. "Just what we need. Jazz is going to throw a party every week."

"Lighten up, 'Cee. We could use a good party around here," Bulkhead interjected. Ratchet huffed and shook his head. Raf smirked and jumped when his phone suddenly vibrated.

"Scrap," he said, making 'Bee look down at him. "I was supposed to go home after school and I forgot." Bumblebee beeped soothingly and transformed down. The boy was about to get in when Optimus stopped him.

"Rafael," he said, his baritone voice quieter than normal. He knelt down as Bulkhead lead Mirage, Hound, and Arcee over to a new weapon prototype Ratchet had just finished creating. "Have you seen Jack lately?"

"Yeah, this morning." The was confusion behind his words, but not enough to make his statement appear as a question.

"If you happen to see him again, will you tell him that he needs to keep an eye out for any decepticon activity? They have not made a move in a while, but I fear that they are planning something with any human that has had direct contact with us."

"I will, Optimus."

The Prime inclined his head and stood up, leaving Raf to climb into the idling Urbana next to him. Then 'Bee drove him out of the warehouse.

* * *

**For those of you confused, this is 6 years in the future from the cartoon series. Raf is 18 and a senior in school, Jack is married to Seirra, and Miko is in Japan again. But they will make an appearance later on!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Thanks to everyone who reviewed/fav'd/followed this story! Chapter lengths are not going to be consitant, unfortunatley.**

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The next two weeks passed by relatively uneventful. The one thing that stood out to Raf the most was his new sense of paranoia that developed. He kept seeing flashes of red appear in the most random areas. But every time he'd look closer, there'd be nothing there.

The day arrived when Ultra Magnus was scheduled to land with the three new mechs. Fowler had provided the 'bots with safe coordinates for them to land at. Optimus had, in turn, given them to Magnus.

Raf found himself in Bumblebee's passenger seat, waiting for the familiar blue ship to appear on the horizon. They were a few miles away from the landing coordinates and the base. Mirage was sitting next to 'Bee, in his Ferrari form. The light blue mech was relaxing on his axles.

Raf's cell phone was sitting on the dashboard when it buzzed. He jumped and grabbed for it.

"_Fowler here. Where are you? I have some books for you to study._"

"Hey. I'm with 'Bee and Mirage. Ultra Magnus is supposed to land today, remember?" He could hear Fowler smack himself through the phone.

"_I forgot about that. When will you be back?_"

Any response Raf started to form was lost as the shrill whistle of a missile caught his attention. The projectile landed right next to the two mechs, exploding on impact. The explosion made them rock on their axles.

Rafael craned his neck up to see out the windshield. Three silver eradicons flew overhead, circling around for another go.

"_What in the Sam Hill was that?_" Fowler's panicked voice filtered through the phone.

"Decepticon attack, gotta go," Raf said hurriedly, hanging up. He pocketed his phone and ducked out of Bumblebee so the mech could transform.

The Urbana quickly instructed Raf to take cover behind a few protruding rocks. He complied and watched as the two mechs opened fire on the seekers. They succeeded in making two of them fall from the sky, but a dozen more arrived and took their place.

After a few minutes of trading shots, resulting in a few leaks in the 'bots, Raf saw the outline of Magnus' ship appear. The 'bots were too busy fighting to notice, and the boy watched with wide eyes.

Mirage was busy holding off three at once. He had an arm blade, much like Arcee's, unsheathed and clawing at the enemies.

Bumblebee was having a little more trouble. Two 'cons were facing him on the ground while the remaining seekers were circling overhead and firing shots.

One eradicon distracted 'Bee with a shot to the shoulder while the other knocked his pedes out from under him. 'Bee looked up at them with wide optics, wondering who was going to deliver the final blow.

Both of them were suddenly blasted off of him and flew a few feet backwards. The Urbana looked around for his savior right as Magnus' ship blasted overhead. The cargo doors opened and the silver mech, Jazz, jumped out. He did a lithe somersault and quickly started attacking the 'cons.

Raf looked up at the ship and saw the one named Prowl holding onto a metal beam while he fired an advanced-looking rifle.

Thanks to the arriving mechs, the rest of the eradicon group was taken down relatively easily. Once the final warrior fell, Ultra Magnus piloted his ship to the ground and the autobot warriors relaxed a bit. Prowl dropped to the ground from his perch and kept a hold on his rifle.

The docking door lowered again, and the commander walked out, with Ironhide behind him.

"Action on arrival, huh? This place must be crawlin' with 'cons," Ironhide commented, examining the surrounding lands for any suspicious activity.

"How did Megatron know we were coming?" Prowl asked, storing his rifle in a compartment in his chest.

"_Soundwave, probably,_" Bumblebee chirped. Raf walked out from behind the rock then.

"Ah, you brought the native life form with you," Ultra Magnus noted. That got Prowl, Jazz, and Ironhide's attention.

"So this is ah human? Crazy," Jazz said, kneeling down to get to Raf's level. He poked the boy on the top of the head. Raf swatted the mech's hand away, gaining a small bruise on his hand in the process. Jazz laughed. "Relax, kid. Ah'm jus' messin' wit' ya. What's yo' designation?"

"I'm Rafael, or just Raf for short." he introduced.

"Cool, dawg. Ah'm Jazz, that's I'onhide, and that's Prowler," Jazz replied, not knowing that Raf already knew who they were.

Prowl cleared his throat, or made a noise that sounded like he did. "Do not call me that, Jazz. My designation is Prowl."

"We should load up and get back to base," Magnus spoke up. Prowl nodded in agreement and Raf got the sense that the mech was used to being in charge. Everyone clambered up on the loading dock, and Jazz spoke.

"'Ey, 'Raj. 'Ow ya been?"

"It's been quiet here, Jazz," Mirage said softly, his Italian accent showing through. The dock rose up, depositing them all in the belly of the ship. Not much had changed from the last time Raf had been on board. The same two chairs took up the most floor space, and everything else was hidden away in cupboards.

An evil smirk appeared on Jazz's face. "Ah got one word fo' ya. PAR-TAY!"

His yell made Ultra Magnus flinch and Prowl shoot a glare at the spy. Jazz had the grace to look ashamed of himself, but once the doorwinger had looked away, the grin was back.

The mech tip-toed across the floor, making absolutely no noise. Raf was impressed. Jazz raised his arms above his head like a cartoon bear would and made a funny face. He was about to grab Prowl by the shoulders when the black-and-white 'bot spun around and lifted Jazz off the floor by his neck.

"I may not be able to see you, Jazz, but I do know what you are attempting to do," Prowl stated in a monotone. Jazz made a fake choking noise to humor the mech and Prowl set him back on the ground.

Jazz looked put out. "All these vorns ah servin' tagether an' Ah still can't sneak up on 'im."

Raf watched, perplexed. "How'd you know he was doing that, Prowl?" he asked. The mech looked at the boy.

"The same way I would be able to tell where everybot on this ship was if I were blindfolded. My doorwings collect data and alert me when _someone_-" he leveled a glare at Jazz, "-tries to do something that I do not want."

"Do all doorwings do that?" Raf asked curiously.

"To some extent, yes. But most mechs do not have theirs as calibrated as mine. For instance, Bumblebee's do not collect as much data as mine. They scan for spark signatures and larger signals, because he does not have the use for as much data as I do. Tacticians like myself need to know everything that goes on around them."

Bumblebee nodded his head in agreement, his doorwings bobbing up and down with the motion. The movement drew Raf's attention back to Prowl's unnaturally stiff one's, but he didn't question the mech about it.

"We are at the coordinates Optimus has supplied us with," Ultra Magnus announced. To punctuate his words, the ship tilted as it started to descend, making Raf lose his balance. He grabbed onto Bumblebee's foot for support, making Jazz laugh at his antics.

A slight jolt signified the ship touching down. Everybot loaded up on the docking bay again, and Raf couldn't help but wish that Jack and Miko were there to meet the new guys.


	3. Chapter 3

The first meeting with the rest of Team Prime went over rather smoothly. Everyone knew everyone. Raf guessed this when Jazz attacked Arcee in a vicious hug, lifting her off the ground. He was the same height as her, so the mech was a lot stronger than he looked.

When Agent Fowler arrived, he unloaded a stack of books on the boy and proceeded to almost interrogate the new mechs until Optimus stopped him.

"Agent Fowler, you need not act like that. These are old friends from Cybertron, not a repeat of the Wheeljack incident," Optimus gently reprimanded.

Nonetheless, Fowler winced. "My apologies. Dang 'cons are getting to my head lately."

"'Wheeljack incident'?" Ironhide repeated, confused.

"Makeshift pretended to be Wheeljack," Raf informed them, slightly out of breath as he lugged the heavy books to Fowler's office. "We didn't figure it out right away."

"Come on, soldier! Grow some muscle," Fowler said, giving Raf a look.

"Yes, sir!" He straightened to the best of his ability and headed for the office with renewed energy. By the time he reached the door, his arms were starting to protest from the strain. He set them on the desk right before his arms gave out.

Raf started to head back out, but stopped when Fowler yelled for him to bring a pen and some paper. Grabbing a few sheets, he ran back out, wondering why they needed paper.

He quickly found out. Fowler was documenting some basic information on each of the new mechs, like he had already done for the existing members of team prime.

They also had to choose alternate modes. Prowl became a Dodge Challenger police crusier. Ironhide took a red Ford F-650. Jazz fell in love with a silver Pontiac Solstice.

Once that was done, Fowler finished up with the paperwork. He left to go log the info on his computer, the new mechs now easily recognizable.

Curious, Rafael asked, "What cities were you born in?"

"'Born'?" Prowl questioned.

"Created," Arcee supplied.

"Ah. I am from Praxus," Prowl responded.

"Ah was sparked in Polyhex," Jazz answered.

"Tarn," Ironhide shrugged.

Raf nodded, adding the cities to his mental map of Cybertron. He was curious to see a real map of Cybertron and compare it to what he thought.

His thoughts were interrupted by Fowler poking his head out the office door.

"Raf. Come here for a second."

The boy grabbed his laptop from a nearby crate where it had been left before the group had arrived and ran to the office.

"Yeah?"

Agent Fowler looked up from his computer. "I have a few things for you to start looking over."

-oOo-

Raf panted, slightly out of breath as he pedaled his bike to the grocery store. 'Bee was out scouting for energon with Jazz, leaving him to bike to get everything on his mother's list.

A quick flash of red caught his eye, making him jerk his head so he could gaze at the offending object. Nothing was there.

Slightly nervous, Raf looked ahead again and narrowly missed a nasty crack in the sidewalk. He went on, hoping his brain was just playing tricks on him.

But another streak of color made his eyes widen. He checked for it. Nothing.

Again.

Nothing.

Again.

Nothing.

Panicked, Raf took off, working on adrenaline. He pedaled faster, trying to get away from the mysterious color. Trees, houses, and passing cars all blurred together as he sped away. He nearly passed the Jeep that went by, honking its horn at him.

Recognizing the vehicle at the last second, Raf spun 180 degrees and slammed on the brakes, nearly ramming into Hound's bumper as the mech pulled over.

"Raf? What's going on?"

"Nothing. Can you give me a lift?" he asked hurriedly, swinging off the bike.

"Sure," Hound answered, sounding a bit confused.

"I'll explain on the way," Raf promised, hoisting his bike into the Jeep's backseat. Jumping into the passenger seat, he came face to face with Hound's holoform for the first time.

The male sat there, unmoving. He was average looking, with brown hair and brown eyes. The replica of a person didn't even twitch as Hound merged back into the traffic.

"Where to?"

"Grocery store." Raf leaned back in the seat, calming down as the adrenaline faded. He sighed, suddenly tired. "Thanks. Now, don't call me crazy, but this does sound a little weird."

"On my honor as a scout," Hound pledged. Raf nodded.

"I keep seeing flashes of red everywhere. It's not a light, but it's there one second and gone the next. It's freaking me out," Raf explained.

Hound was silent for a moment. "Have you told any of the others?" Raf shook his head, knowing the scout could see the motion.

"Should I?"

"I don't know. If you want to. But I'm going to keep an optic out from now on, though."

"Ok."

Silence fell, broken only by the noise of Hound's engine and his wheels on the blacktop. He pulled into the store parking lot and Raf gently got his bike out from the backseat.

"Do you want me to stick around? I'm not getting anything on my patrol," Hound offered.

"No thanks," Raf declined. "I can call someone if I get paranoid again. But can you keep this quiet for now, please? I don't want you guys to worry anymore than the 'cons are making you already."

"'Course I can. I'll see you around then, Raf."

"Bye, Hound."

The teen watched the Jeep pull back out onto the street. He chained his bike to the bike rack and entered the air-conditioned mini mart.

-oOo-

The brightly decorated sports car pulled up to the Jeep that was parked in an empty store's parking lot. The engine noise was cut and they both sat there for a moment, seemingly watching as Raf peddled by on his bike, plastic grocery bags dangling from the handlebars. He lifted one hand in a wave, and both cars flashed their lights.

After he'd gone by, Smokescreen sent Hound a comm. link.

**.:I'm taking over patrol duty. Ratchet wants you to go back to base for a check-up.:. -Smokescreen**

**.:Great. See you at base then.:. -Hound**

The forest-green Jeep's holoform appeared, seemingly starting the engine and driving away, even though the human holoform didn't move an inch.

His frame was warm from the Nevada sun, but the wind that gently flowed around him as he moved cooled him down. He wished he could go off-roading like a lot of those human magazines described, but the distinct lack of forest land prevented him form fulfilling the desire. And he had a feeling that dune-bashing with Bulkhead wasn't quite the same thing.

Hound was having to go dune-bashing a lot more on his own as time passed. Bulkhead's pink-haired charge, Miko, was the one that had gotten him hooked on it in the first place. But she'd been gone for four years now, and the wrecker had lost his enthusiasm for the activity.

His thoughts carried him back to the base, and he only realized he'd reached it when Ratchet's yells reached his audios. That, and the sound of Ratchet's famous wrench of doom being smacked against an unfortunate somebot's helm.

Hound drove into the base and transformed, wincing when he saw the size of the new dent in Ironhide's helm. Said mech was rubbing the dent and cursing out the medic.

"Well don't take so long to get your joint repaired next time," Ratchet said sourly.

"Well Ah'm sorry," Ironhide said sarcastically. "There weren't exactly a lot ah medics where we were hidin' out."

Ratchet nodded absently, looking slightly apologetic. "You're good to go for now. Don't wait so long next time, though."

Ironhide nodded curtly and left the temporary medical area. Ratchet turned to Hound, wielding his wrench once more.

"Uh, hi," Hound said, backing away warily.

"So, how many dents do I get to give you?" Ratchet asked, smirking a little.

* * *

**A/N: I have no idea where Ironhide is actually from...**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Transformers: Prime, Hasbro does.**

* * *

Rafael sat on the couch at the autobot base, messing with some of the programs on his computer. Ratchet was manning the groundbridge again while everyone else was out at an energon mine, hopefully beating the 'cons and getting some of the fuel. Everyone except Jazz, who was in his alternate mode in the corner, sulking.

He'd accidentally broken one of the data pads Prowl had brought from Cybertron. He'd been left at base as a result. Then he'd gotten on Ratchet's nerves enough that the medic had locked the poor mech in his vehicle mode. Jazz was pointlessly flipping through radio stations loud enough so Ratchet could hear.

Raf was trying to tune out the music unsuccessfully, so he gave up, closing his laptop. The boy went over to the Pontiac and opened the door, slipping into the passenger seat.

"'Ey, Raf. Am Ah annoyin' ya?" he asked glumly. Raf could tell he was really bored.

"Not really. Do you still have control of your vehicle mode?" he questioned, eying Ratchet. The medic was muttering to himself, letting the boy know he was too busy with his medical stuff to pay much attention to them.

"Yeah. Why?"

"We could go for a drive," Raf suggested.

"Bu' Prowler said ta-"

"He said that you couldn't go on the mission, not that you were confined to base," Raf pointed out.

"Yo'r sneaky, mah friend," Jazz chuckled. He inched forward without turning on his engine. Ratchet gave no sign that he noticed, and the spy kept his music playing.

Then Jazz turned on his engine and gunned it in a span of a second, making Ratchet jump. Both Jazz and Raf laughed as they sped out of the base and into the warm Saturday sun. They could hear Ratchet calling them back halfheartedly, but of course, Jazz ignored him.

Rolling down all his windows, the Pontiac put on a lively beat that Raf found himself bobbing along to. Then he started.

"Wow, I just pulled a Miko."

"'Pulled ah Miko?' Wha'?"

Watching the scenery roll by, they slowly entered downtown Jasper. "She used to hang out around base with me and would sneak through the groundbridge to go on missions. You never knew her."

"Ah."

The music took over for a moment, and Jazz braked at an empty stoplight. A young woman that looked vaguely familiar walked by. Then it hit him.

"MIKO!"

Jazz jumped, rolling forward a few inches. "Wha'?"

Ignoring the mech, Raf opened the door and jumped out. He ran to the sidewalk and gave a bear hug to the girl that had turned at the sound of her name.

"Oof." She was still for a moment before pushing him back a little and looking at him. "Raf?"

"Yeah! You're back!" He looked her over.

She'd filled out in the last few years, looking more like a woman. Her usual tank tops had been exchanged for a black t-shirt that had a picture of the Slash Monkeys on it. Her usual boots, shorts, and hairstyle remained.

"You've grown! You don't look as nerdy, either," she said, the usual sparkle in her eyes.

"Um, thanks. I think."

"So, where is everyone else? Are they still here, even?"

"Yeah, except for Jack."

They were interrupted by the sound of a horn honking. Raf turned to see Jazz, idling by the curb.

"Are ya comin' or not?" he asked.

"Yeah, sorry. C'mon, Miko." Raf walked around to the driver's side and Miko tentatively slid into the other seat.

"Who is this?" she asked, glancing at the interior design of tan leather and an air freshener that was an electric guitar. Jazz pulled out onto the street again.

"Miko, meet Jazz. Jazz, Miko," Raf said, pretending to drive for the benefit of passerby.

"Nice ta meet ya, lil' lady," Jazz drawled.

"Hi. You have a cool accent. How long ago did you get here?"

"One week, by ya human standa'ds."

Raf was surprised she wasn't firing off questions like she had done before. Something in Japan had changed her. She turned to him.

"You said Jack was gone. What happened to him?"

"Um, he got married. Last year." He didn't look at her, knowing how she could turn violent sometimes at a moment's notice.

"He did what?! To who!?" she exclaimed.

"Sierra." His voice shrunk a little, afraid at her sudden outburst. Raf had never been one to stay calm when someone was angry.

"How could he? He broke up the band!" she said, crossing her arms and glaring out the window.

"Um, he said the same thing when you left. Then it was just me at base," Raf mumbled, looking at her again. Outside, the KO Burger joint rolled past, conveniently making them both gaze at it. Neither commented on the building and their thoughts, though.

"He said that?" Miko questioned, confused.

"Well, not in the same words."

A light silence followed, and Jazz took the opportunity to change the radio station in an attempt to lighten the mood. The singer practically screamed into the microphone making Raf wince. Miko, on the other hand, started head-banging, rocking out to the music.

"Ya like this kind o' music?" Jazz asked.

"Yeah! Bulkhead and I would listen to it when we went dune-bashing before!" she said happily. :Where is Bulkhead, anyways?"

"Out getting some energon with the others," Raf answered. "I don't think we should go back to base yet, though."

"Why?"

"Jazz and I pretty much ran away from Ratchet. He might be mad enough to use his wrench," Rafael explained, feeling a little proud of himself.

"Good job!" Miko laughed, patting him on the back. "I have taught you well." Raf grinned.

"Nah, let's go see 'ow mad 'e is!" Jazz put in. Miko chuckled, looking at Raf.

He sighed, giving in. "Alright. Let's see how many times you can get wrenched."

-oOo-

"You left, you little slagger!"

_Bang!_

Jazz's Pontiac for, shuddered at the pain. "Ow!"

"And you," Ratchet said, turning to Raf, who held up his hands in surrender. "You pulled a Miko! Miko, you should know better by now." Ratchet turned back to the console.

The two teens looked at each other and grinned. The boy held up three fingers, counting down. 3...2...1...

"MIKO! How did you get here?!" the medic yelled, spinning around again.

"My plane just arrived this morning. I haven't found a cheap enough hotel yet, though."

"Hey, my mom might let you stay with us," Raf offered. "You'll probably have to do chores or something for pay."

"Sounds good enough to me. As long as I'm here and not in Japan, anything is good," she shrugged.

"Speaking of Japan, why aren't you there?" Ratchet asked, returning to his usual, grouchy self. Miko ran to the couch as he spoke, flopping down on it. Raf followed at a slower pace, sitting down with his laptop.

"Parents. I'm nineteen now, I can make my own decisions. But they're pressuring me to get married." She made a face.

"Isn't it the parent's place to tell you what to do?" Ratchet inquired, turning back to the console when it beeped.

"Not anymore! I'm an adult now!"

"Ratchet, we need a bridge," Optimus' voice came through. The medic pulled on a lever and the swirling green vortex came to life.

Raf quickly instructed Miko to hide, telling her that he wanted to surprise Bulkhead. She smirked and agreed, running to get behind a stack of crates.

One by one, the 'bots came through the portal, each carrying a stack of several energon cubes. Mirage was at the end of the line, and the bridge closed behind him. Ratchet looked pleased at the amount of energon they had acquired.

"Hey, Bulkhead!" Raf piped up, drawing the green wrecker's attention. "Wanna go dune-bashing?"

"I didn't think you liked that," he replied, slightly surprised.

"I don't. But she does," Rafael replied, pointing at the crates, where Miko had climbed to the top.

"Bulkhead!"

"Miko!"

Shock and joy was all over Bulkhead's face while Miko looked really happy. The rest of the autobots who had known Miko before looked surprised as well. She explained her story to them again when Arcee asked.

After she'd been introduced to Prowl and Ironhide, (who she'd described as "stiffer than Ratchet" and "grumpy but cool") the 'bots each went their own ways.

Bulkhead took Miko and Ironhide dune-bashing, the latter of the two curious about the sport. Prime, Prowl, and, oddly enough, Smokescreen talked to Agent Fowler about political matters through a secure video call. Mirage and Hound disappeared into their quarters. Arcee went for a drive, accompanied by 'Bee and Raf.

Before they pulled out of the warehouse, Raf could hear Jazz yelling, "'Ey! Somebody let meh outta mah vehicle mode!"

* * *

**A/N: Sort of a light chapter, but as Optimus said, "In any war, there are calms between the storms." Next chapter... :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: And now, the chapter you have all been waiting for!**

* * *

Sunlight streaming through the window woke Rafael up. It was Saturday again, almost a week after Miko had arrived. The girl was staying with his family until she could find a place of her own, as Raf's mother put it.

The teen threw the covers off of himself and stood up, putting on his glasses so he could see. Quickly getting dressed, Raf dashed downstairs, only to be greeted be the smell of something burning,

Getting worried, he followed his nose to the source; the kitchen. Reaching the doorway, he tried to go inside, only to be forced back out by the lack of oxygen. Coughing, Raf waved his arms to clear the air a bit and ran inside.

The thick, gray smoke was coming off of something that had been eggs and bacon, but now resembled charcoal. The flame underneath the frying pan was still going, and Raf quickly turned off the burner. Miko was crouched over a chair, gagging from the smoke. Raf wrapped his arms around her shoulders and lead her out into the living room, which was mostly clear.

The smoke alarm chose that moment to go off, wailing obnoxiously loud. The boy leapt on the couch and unscrewed the contraption. His mother came scurrying down the stairs, wrapped in a pink robe.

"I'm sorry!" Miko exclaimed, looking close to tears. "I was just trying to make breakfast!"

"It was an accident, it's okay," Raf's mother said, hugging the Japanese girl as Rafael took a deep breath and charged back into the smokey kitchen. He opened the three windows and moved the frying pan into the sink. Then he ran back out, inhaling as much smoke-free air as he could without making noise to upset Miko further.

He leaned against the wall for a moment to regain his bearings. He could hear his mother helping Miko calm down, and he gave her a moment to pull herself back together. The boy was well aware of the fact her character was a strong one, and she didn't want to be seen breaking down.

When he entered the living room, Miko was pointedly staring at the window, avoiding everyone's eyes.

"Well, what do you two want to eat, now that you're both up?" his mother asked. Miko simply shrugged and Raf told her to make whatever she felt like making. Then older woman nodded and left to change while the kitchen cleared out.

Silence reigned for a moment. Then Raf cleared his throat. "It was an accident. It's okay, you know."

Miko shrugged again, but turned to face him. "I just feel bad. You're family has been nothing but nice to me, and I just woke you guys up with a smokey kitchen and a noisy alarm."

"Again, it's okay. And if it helps, I was already awake." He walked over to her and gave her a one-armed hug. She smirked and he knew that she was alright when she shoved him away playfully.

"Oh, you wanna see who's boss, huh?" she teased. They got into a brief wrestling match and she ended up pining him on the couch. Both of them were laughing. Raf groped for his glasses, which had gotten knocked off his face. Miko handed them to him and helped him back up to his feet. The scent of smoke was slowly fading and being replaced by the aroma of sweet french toast.

"Rafael! Miko! The french toast is ready!" his mother called. They quickly smoothed out their clothing and entered the smoke-free kitchen.

-oOo-

Two hours later, the two teens walked through the park gates. The hot sun beat down on their backs, evoking sweat from both of them.

On the well-kept green grass, people were throwing a frisbee, playing with dogs, walking, or hiding in the shade of a few oaks and conversing with each other. The small playground was filled with children running around wildly and yelling. Raf remembered playing there his older sisters when he was younger.

"Heads up!" someone shouted. Raf ducked instinctively and Miko jumped up to catch the frisbee that was accidentally thrown at them. Smirking victoriously, she handed it back to the boy who came to get it.

"Nice catch," the kid said, before tossing it back to his friends. Miko looked over at Rafael.

"Now what?" he asked her. "We came here, what are we gonna do?"

"Hm, I know! I can tell you about the battle the 'bots had yesterday! You weren't there, 'cuz of school and all, but I snuck out with them."

"Again, Miko?" he sighed. "Okay, that's the best idea we have."

Miko grinned again and ran to an empty, shady bench. Once Raf had taken a seat, she started her tale, adding various hand movements to make it seem more dramatic.

Standing before the boy, she said, "The bridge was open, just inviting me in. So I snuck behind the evil medic of doom and ran in!" Raf snorted at Ratchet's new nickname. "The battlefield was like any other, with ginormous rocks and rough ground. There was an energon mine in the hill, too. Three dozen vehicons were already fighting with the 'bots.

"Bulkhead was ready for them. He had his wrecking ball out and pummeling them right away. But they weren't fighting fair. Three 'cons jumped on him to pin him down and that would've ended badly if Bumblebee hadn't shot them down then."

Entranced, Raf slowly stopped paying attention to his surroundings and focused more on the story.

"Prowl stopped long enough to help Bulkhead back up and then they were off again! All four of them were firing at the 'cons. Arcee was slowly gaining the upper hand in a one-on-three fight. They eventually got rid of all of the vehicons. The energon was gathered and they left. Bulkhead saw me on his way back and brought me, too. Ratchet never even knew that I left!"

Raf laughed. Of course Miko would pride herself on that. A familiar, lanky figure caught his attention then. He looked at the man and put a name on him, due to the unmistakable black hair and facial features.

Jack slowly walked up to them, realizing who Raf was talking to.

"Miko?"

She turned and saw who had called her name, before scowling and taking a step toward him. He seemed a bit wary, and she punched him on the arm. He took a step back, wincing. "You left us! How could you?"

"Nice to see you, too."

"Guys, don't start anything," Raf piped in, standing up from the bench. Miko stuck her tongue out at him. "Jack, Optimus wanted me to tell you to be careful, and watch out for-"

A flash of red cut him off, and he froze as Optimus' words came back to him.

"_They have not made a move in a while, but I fear that they are planning something with any human that has had direct contact with us."_

_I've been being followed,_ Raf realized. _And the only red 'con I know is... _

"Watch out for what?" Jack asked, confused.

"You two, get out of here!" Raf said urgently, albeit quietly. He was staring to panic. "I just realized I'm being followed by Knockout, and have been for the past month. Get somewhere safe, because he's here now."

Miko's eyes widened, and Jack took off at a brisk walk back to the playground, where his daughter was. Raf lead the way away from the park, with Miko following him. They reached the street unscathed, but Raf knew in the back of his mind that Knockout was tailing them again.

"Go," he said quietly. "Get back to the base. We'll split up. He can't follow us both."

She nodded silently and turned left on the sidewalk. Raf went right, heading downtown. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the flashy red Aston Martin pulling out of the park parking lot and following him.

Raf set off at an unhurried pace, trying to act natural. But the creepy decepticon medic got a little too close for comfort, and the boy ducked into an alleyway that was too narrow for the 'con to fit through.

Knockout revved his engine unhappily when he watched the boy getting away. He took off, driving away and spinning around a corner on two tires.

Rafael ran down the alley and reached the other side of it, leaning over to catch his breath. The alley he had just came out of connected with three others, creating a space large enough to hold a small house. One of the alleys was large enough for a car, and the boy had a sense of discomfort. Thinking it wasn't safe where he was, he decided to move on.

But he knew he was too late when Knockout came roaring down the alley.

"Scrap."

Before Rafael could run away again, the mech transformed and captured the human in one, clawed servo. Knockout looked the boy over and smirked vainly.

"Lord Megatron will be pleased," he said, transforming around the boy and knocking him unconscious. The last thing Raf was aware of was the interior of the vain 'con and the fact that his cell phone was lying on the ground.

-oOo-

Miko panted as she ran down the alley Raf had taken. She knew he had told her to go to base, but she also knew Raf was in danger.

The screech of tires reached her ears, and she turned the corner, only to see Knockout speeding away. There was no sign of Raf. The glinting of sun on metal caught her eye, and she looked down. It was his phone. She picked it up.

"Oh no," she muttered. Dialing Bulkhead on her own phone, she said, "Bulk? We have a problem."


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: Sorry for the wait, everybody.**

* * *

"_He's WHAT_?" Bumblebee exclaimed, chirping madly in the way only he could. "_How_?!"

"Um, what?" asked Miko. The 'bots ignored her question in favor of answering 'Bee.

"Bumblebee, please. Calm yourself. Losing your head is not going to help Rafael," Optimus said gently, gazing at the yellow scout.

"So Knockout took him? Makes sense, I guess," Hound interjected. "He was gettin' paranoid about seeing red following him. I guess it was the decepticon's red paint job."

"_He told you, but not me_?" asked Bumblebee, feeling slightly hurt.

"Not exactly. Neither of us could fig're out what the red was, but he asked me to stay quiet so the rest of you wouldn't worry," Hound shrugged.

Bulkhead placed a hand on Bumblebee's shoulder in a soothing manner, but the scout shrugged him off and walked away. Plopping down on a stack of crates, 'Bee hid his face in his hands.

"_This is all my fault_," he beeped quietly.

"You weren't even there. How would it be your fault?" Mirage asked, his slightly Italian accent penetrating his words.

"_Exactly_!" Bumblebee snapped, jumping up and starting to pace agitatedly. "_If I had been there, I could've chased Knockout off! But now Raf is stuck in the decepticon warship, and Primus only knows what they're doing to him! We have to save him_!"

"I am afraid I must stop you there, Bumblebee," Optimus said, looking pointedly at the Urbana. "We are still vastly outnumbered. Storming the Nemesis at this point in time would only result in the decepticons harming Rafael further to prevent us from getting him back. They may even offline him."

"'Offline'? As in, kill?" Miko whispered, covering her mouth in horror. Bulkhead nodded at her.

The usually happy-go-lucky mech glared at Optimus, turning his back on the group. He stormed past Ratchet, who wisely didn't say anything. Transforming, the Urbana sped out of the warehouse, narrowly missing a few human soldiers that walked by.

Waiting until he was out of sight, the Prime spoke again. "Smokescreen, you go keep an optic on Bumblebee. Prowl, take Bulkhead and Arcee. Ultra Magnus, you have Hound and Mirage. Scout through Jasper for any hints that might be remaining."

The autobots that had been named nodded and transformed, exiting the warehouse in a much slower manner than Bumblebee had. Optimus gazed back at his remaining warriors. Ironhide and Jazz were looking at him expectantly, while Ratchet was engrossed with the console's screen, which had pinged only moments before.

-oOo-

"Hey, 'Bee! Wait up!" Smokescreen yelled. In response, the Urbana revved his engine and went a little faster. The rookie sighed, wishing he could leave the scout alone. It was obviously what Bumblebee wanted. But orders were orders. So Smokescreen gunned his own engine and caught up. "Relax. I'm just here to make sure you don't get hurt."

"_And let me guess. Prime sent you to do that_," Bumblebee snarled.

"Well, yeah. He cares about your safety." Smokescreen swerved to avoid smashing into 'Bee, who had slammed on the brakes the moment the words left the rookie's mouth. The yellow mech transformed, and Smokescreen was about to lecture him on being undercover wen he realized where they were.

Bumblebee had lead them out into the desert, only a few miles from where their first base had been. Nothing was around them except flat land and fine sand. Smokescreen transformed up as well.

"_Oh, that's right. Prime wants ME safe, but he doesn't care where Raf is! Well, newsflash. He's with the 'cons! The same ones who tortured Fowler and destroyed Cybertron!_" Bumblebee walked off, cursing vehemently and crushing boulders as he passed.

"That is where you're wrong," Smokescreen said quietly. "He does care. He just sent out patrols for any remaining clues and he's prepping an infiltration team. Prime just wants to know that we're not all going to be slaughtered the instant we depart."

Bumblebee sat down on the ground, spraying sand everywhere. He his his face in his hands again. Smokescreen knelt next to him, waiting for the scout to calm down.

After a moment, 'Bee mumbled, "_You sound like Prime, you know._"

The sports car chuckled, making 'Bee look up. "Well, that's not really a surprise. Not after what he told me." 'Bee nodded.

Smokescreen had only told Bumblebee of what had happened before Prime had gotten his flight deck. When Optimus had given up. When Smokescreen stole the Forge of Solus Prime from underneath Megatron's nose. When Optimus had named Smokescreen the next Prime.

It was unofficial, of course, but Optimus was teaching the rookie anyways. The burden of being the next leader often got to Smokescreen, and 'Bee had followed him out on a drive late one night. The rookie had spilled everything, as well as his fear of not being good enough for the task. After that, they had been inseparable and close friends.

"_We still had ti get Rafael back,_" 'Bee muttered, determination filling his optics. Smokescreen nodded and stood up. He started to say something about getting back to Jasper and the others, but Bumblebee zoned out when his comm. link pinged.

**.:Bumblebee, I believe I have something of yours.:. -Blocked Designation**

The drawling voice was unmistakable.

**.:Knockout. What have you done with Raf?:. -Bumblebee**

**.:Oh, nothing. Yet. But if you don't meet me at your old base in the next earth hour, you won't ever hear from him again.:. -Blocked Designation**

**.:You'd better have him in one piece!:. -Bumblebee**

He got no response, and he wasn't sure if Knockout had heard his last statement or not. Smokescreen was still talking, not realizing that Bumblebee hadn't heard a word he'd said.

"_C'mon,_" 'Bee interrupted, transforming.

Smokescreen shuttered his optics, surprised. "Where are you going?"

"_To get Raf back._"

"But Optimus said-"

"_We're not storming the Nemesis. Just come on._" He could tell Smokescreen was still confused, but the mech transformed and followed 'Bee. Soon, they were racing across the desert, spewing sand from their tires and racing to a destination only Bumblebee knew.

-oOo-

He went in head-on, not bothering to hide his energy signal or presence. Smokescreen warily followed. Both transformed, and the race car looked around, seeing the wreckage of their once-hidden base. Pieces of stone and metal littered the ground, surrounded by a few still-standing walls of the stone structure. The faded autobot symbol on the floor was half-covered, but still recognizable.

"What are we doing here?" he asked, keeping his voice low. Bumblebee didn't answer, but morphed both servos into blasters. His optics furiously scanned the area. "Bumblebee, what does this place have to do with Rafael?"

'Bee was saved from having to explain when Knockout stepped out from behind a large piece of fallen debris.

"Ah, look who decided to show up. And you brought a friend, too. Excellent."

"_Where is he?_" Bumblebee asked furiously, aiming his weapons at the lustrous, cherry-red mech. Smokescreen followed his lead.

"Oh, he's here. You just have to come and get him." Knockout lifted one hand and a vehicon came out from the rubble of the old base, carrying the still form of Raf. He was bound in strips of sturdy leather, and his mouth was covered as well, preventing the boy from making any understandable noise.

Bumblebee's optics narrowed at the smug loo on Knockout's faceplates. Raf's eyes widened at the sight of the two autobots, but he made no sudden movements. The mech took a step forward, but stopped at the sound of the medic's voice.

"Ah ah ah. No weapons. Either of you. Neither of us will attack you, if you two will see fit to comply as well."

Bumblebee waited a moment, as if to see if the medic would suddenly attack them. When nothing happened, he cautiously changed his guns back into servos. He took a slow step forward, and Knockout still did not move.

"Bumblebee, something doesn't feel right," Smokescreen hissed. The yellow mech nodded his helm once to acknowledge his comrade's words, but he had to get his charge back.

'Bee started advancing again, getting closer to the 'cons. He got three-quarters of the way to Knockout, the vehicon, and most importantly, Rafael.

Then Knockout yelled one word that made Bumblebee's energon run cold. "NOW!"

Three dozen 'cons burst out from various positions in among the ruins of the base, a mix of vehicons and eradicons. They were all simultaneously firing their standard-issue blasters at the two autobots. To Smokescreen, their aim seemed even worse than usual. The ground quickly became splattered with scorch marks, and not a single shot hit either autobot.

Bumblebee and Smokescreen quickly hopped into action, withdrawing their guns from the recesses of their armor and retaliated with shots of their own. Five 'cons fell almost instantly.

Several troopers dropped down from their sniping positions and advanced on the 'bots, encircling them. Bumblebee shot one in the chestplates and dropped to one knee to avoid a head shot. Then he jumped back up and was about to smash one's helm when a yell rang out across the battlefield.

"Stop, or he dies!"

The yellow scout immediately froze, gaining himself a shot wound in his leg. Smokescreen took a nano-klik longer to stop than 'Bee.

Knockout had a blaster in his hand, prepped and aimed at the small prisoner in the vehicon's hand. True to his word, neither of them had attacked the autobots.

Worried for his charge's safety, Bumblebee wasted no time in morphing his guns back to his hands and holding them above his head in surrender.

Knockout started walking towards them, the vehicon staying in step. The gun never once left Raf's form. Taking advantage of the momentary distraction, the 'cons surrounding the two autobots jumped on their frames, effectively pinning them down. Knockout smirked.

A pair of stasis cuffs were snapped onto Bumblebee's wrists. Neither of the 'bots had noticed the cuff's presence. If it were possible, the evil medic's smirk grew even wider. He hauled the yellow mech to his feet.

"What about the other one?" asked the vehicon holding Raf.

"We don't need him. Just leave him here," Knockout ordered. He turned and walked through a ground bridge that seemingly arbitrarily appeared. Several vehicons shoved Bumblebee through, followed by the 'con holding Rafael. The rest held down Smokescreen until the first group was gone from view. Then one shoved his helm into the dirt, distracting him while the last few 'cons ran through.

Choking on the earth soil, Smokescreen shoved himself up and followed them, sprinting. But it closed right before he reached it. He grasped at where the 'bridge had been mere moments before. "Bumblebee! NO!"


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Thanks to all the favorites, follows, and reviews!**

* * *

Bumblebee fought the stasis cuffs, earning himself several high-powered zaps that wracked his frame. He knew better than to struggle, but fear for Rafael and fear of what the decepticons were planning overrode his logic center's processing power.

Seeing the frightened look on Rafael's face made 'Bee fight all the harder. He had to protect his charge and keep the two of them safe. Slowly, he got weaker as the electricity continued to course through his body.

The group went through the halls of the Nemesis, which all looked identical. Raf quickly lost track of where they had been. He glanced over at Bumblebee, who had visible pulses of electricity running the length of his frame. The poor mech was wincing every time a surge went through.

Rafael glanced down at his own bindings, which thankfully weren't as electrifying. But they were tight enough that they were getting to the point of being painful. He tried pulling his wrists apart, earning himself deep gauges from the rope. He flinched.

A sudden clang made him look back to his guardian, who was in a heap on the floor, twitching slightly at the excess electricity. Raf's eyes widened in shock, and he called out. But the covering on his mouth only allowed a muffled, incomprehensible noise to escape.

One of the vehicons knelt and prodded the still form. "He's knocked himself into stasis from fighting the cuffs," the 'con reported.

Knockout snorted. "Drag him behind you, then. We're headed for the brig."

-oOo-

Bumblebee slowly onlined his optics, groggily recalling why he was in stasis in the first place. Then it came to him, and he forced his systems to online quickly, bypassing the normal protocols to check for bugs and errors.

He was hanging from the ceiling in a cell, with thick, metal chains wrapped around his wrists. His legs were also bound together with a length of chain. Glancing sideways, he saw Raf in a similar predicament, but with lighter chains.

The room was dimly lit, fooling Bumblebee on its size.

The mech quickly checked his internal systems, only to find his weapons' transformation cog, comm. unit, and locator beacon were all disabled. Dismayed, 'Bee looked over to his human friend.

"_Are you okay?_" he asked, checking the boy over for any visible signs of injury. To his relief, he found none.

The teen nodded. "I should be asking you that. You... crashed. In the hallway." Raf frowned at that.

Bumblebee grimaced. "_It was the stasis cuffs. Nasty piece of work, they are. If you fight them, they'll shock you._"

"I noticed. If you knew that, then why were you fighting them?"

Bumblebee ducked his head and his doorwings drooped in embarrassment. "_I wanted to get free and get us both out of here._"

Raf gave a small smile, and 'Bee perked back up again. "It's a nice thought, but they have too much security here for that. I was watching on the way in." Bumblebee gave a small, sad whir.

They were both silent for a moment, and then Raf chose to break it. "Now what?"

-oOo-

Smokescreen swung through the streets of Jasper, disregarding the speed limits. Thankfully, the roads were clear. Any humans that were on the sidewalk could hear the powerful engine long before they saw the car it was powering. They had enough sense to not step into the street and merely criticized the reckless driver after he'd swung by.

The mech counted himself lucky that no human police were on his tail, or worse yet, Prowl.

The warehouse base quickly came into view and Smokescreen hit the brakes just in time, doing a fishtail spin through the open door.

Ratchet, as always, was standing in front of his computer terminal. Ultra Magnus was the only other one present, and he scowled as Smokescreen transformed.

"Soldier, you know there is a speed limit of only twenty human earth miles per hour," Magnus said sternly.

"Sorry, sir!" the rookie replied quickly, saluting to ease Magnus' processor. "Is Optimus here?"

"No, he left for a human politic meeting with Agent Fowler and Jazz. But I'm sure whatever you have to say to Prime can be told to me as well."

Smokescreen resisted the urge to vent, knowing that his unofficial mentor, Optimus, would have said it was un-Primely. "Bumblebee was taken hostage, too. Only a breem ago, sir."

Ultra Magnus' optics widened fractionally, and Smokescreen could tell it was only the commander's stern training that prevented his jaw from hitting the floor. He could practically hear the high-end battle computer whirling away in the commander's processor as he calculated the risks of having the yellow scout MIA.

"Explain," Magnus ordered.

"We were driving through the desert, and I was trying to calm him down, like Optimus ordered. He obviously got a comm., but I didn't realize that then. He lead us to the old base, the one that was destroyed before you got here. Knockout was waiting for us there, with Rafael as bait. Vehicons ambushed us, and Knockout managed to get 'Bee tied up and through a ground bridge. There wasn't anything I could do to stop them." His tone lowered at the end as guilt overcame him. Because he hadn't done anything, his best friend was now in the hands of the decepticons, and probably being tortured, along with Rafael.

If Ultra Magnus noted Smokescreen's sorrow, he didn't comment on it. Instead, he said, "We need to contact Optimus and inform him of the situation."

-oOo-

Optimus felt like sighing. He wished that his responsibilities as leader didn't include attending the seemingly pointless meetings. Hadn't there been enough of those before Cybertron had been more than a lifeless husk?

Wearily, Optimus turned his attention back to the humans who were talking up front, making sure that his face mask covered his mouth, just in case his boredom was detectable. They kept discussing the decepticon attacks, and nothing they said was news to the Prime. In fact, most of the information they brought up they only knew because the Prime had told them in the first place.

He vaguely noticed Jazz's optics dimming as he received a message on his comm. Optimus didn't pay any mind to Jazz, until the call surpassed the breem mark. Usually his team tried to keep comms under a breem, just to make sure the lines were kept open. But this one was obviously urgent. When the saboteur's optics finally brightened again, Jazz sent Prime a worried look. Optimus sent his comrade an inquiring gaze, and he got a comm. from Jazz in return.

**.:'Bee got kidnapped, too. Smokey jus' gave the news ta Magnus, an' 'e couln' get a 'old o' ya.:. -Jazz**

**.:When was this?:. -Optimus Prime**

**.:Abou' three b'eems ago.:. -Jazz**

**.:We will head back to base now. This meeting serves no purpose to our intel, and can continue without our presence.:. -Optimus Prime**

He dropped the link and Jazz nodded once at him.

"Agent Fowler," Optimus rumbled quietly, catching the human's attention without disrupting the men up front. "A problem has arisen at base, and we are required there. This meeting can continue without us." The human gave his acknowledgment and left to speak to the other men while the two autobots were left to transform. The quietly left the area, and Jazz chuckled to himself. Prime never was one for meetings and public speaking.

The city quickly became a speck in their rear-view mirrors as they sped back to Jasper. Once the warehouse came back into view, they decelerated and drove in at a safer speed, despite the urgency of the situation.

The thing that stood out the most to the Prime as he transformed was the look of grief and sadness that was written all over his student's faceplates.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I don't own transformers. All characters belong to Hasbro. Sadly.**

* * *

Miko woke up, not realizing where she was at first. Her black and white comforter and soft mattress at her host parents' house were absent. Then the deep tan interior of Bulkhead's backseat came into focus. She could hear the quiet hum of his systems, indicating that he was still in recharge.

The girl silently got up and crawled out of her guardian's alternate mode, rubbing at her messy hair. She made a mental note to store a pair of pj's the next time she slept over at the base.

Ratchet was nowhere to be found, and Smokescreen was pacing quietly along one wall. Having nothing else to do, she padded over to the mech, trying to keep quiet so she wouldn't disturb Bulkhead.

He caught sight of her and paused, asking, "Did I wake you?"

She shook her head. "How are you today?" She knew that the loss of Bumblebee had hit him the hardest. She didn't know why the two were so close, but she did know that out of all the 'bots on base, Smokescreen was closest to the yellow scout, apart from Optimus.

Smokescreen shrugged. "Okay, I guess. But I can't say the same for Bumblebee or Rafael. We need to get them back before they get seriously injured. Or killed." The last part was added on as an afterthought, and it was almost to quiet for Miko to hear. She shuddered internally, thinking about the possibility of never seeing her friend again. Ever since Jack had left, Fowler had been the only person left on base, and he wasn't very good company.

"So, what's your plan?" The words escaped her mouth before she filtered them. She mentally faceplamed. Smokescreen wasn't a leader. So why was her gut telling her that he was one?

Smokescreen sighed, sounding like a human to Miko. He rubbed at his face. "Nothing yet. We have no way to trace the decepticon's warship and nobody to infiltrate. Only Optimus can hold off Megatron, and it takes more than one autobot to effectively take the Nemesis." He sounded tired.

"Ah coul' get inside fo' ya," a voice suggested, making them both turn. Jazz had snuck up behind them. Miko wondered how a fifteen foot tall, metal giant cold be that quiet. "Ah did get inside their base on Cybaht'on multiple times."

Smokescreen nodded. "I was in stasis at the time, but Prowl told me about a few of your missions."

Jazz puffed out his chestplates in a proud sort of manner, reminding Miko of a peacock. He smirked. "Ah'll go an' come back, an' no one'll be any wiser."

"How are you going to get there, though? We don't know where they are," Smokescreen frowned.

Jazz shrugged. "See if ya can get the last coo'dinates 'Bee was at. We can figu'e it out from there."

Smokescreen considered this. He knew that Prime would be mad, but Optimus was otherwise occupied, and if the whole thing worked out, the Prime might just be a little prouder of his student. But if it blew up in their faces, that would be a different story.

Bumblebee's safety was foremost on his mind as he considered these. Who knew what info the 'cons could wrangle from him or Raf?

He gave a single, curt nod. "Find what information you can and come back, Jazz."

-oOo-

Rafael slowly woke up, his aching body protesting even the most minute movements. His arms were completely numb, and he had no idea what time it was. The clang of the brig's doors opening caught his attention, as well as snapping Bumblebee out of his light recharge. Knockout walked in, a swagger in his step as though he were a lion stalking prey that he knew was injured and down for the count.

Raf eyed the 'con warily, wondering what was going to happen. Bumblebee glared at the mech that was keeping them both under lock and key. A vehicon followed the medic, carrying the shock prod that Knockout was renown for using as though it were a treasured child.

"Better get ready, bug," Knockout smirked. "I'm about to get even for all those times you scratched my finish." He then left the cell for reasons unknown, with the vehicon still following him. The prod was left leaning against the wall as a visible threat.

Bumblebee looked at Raf, urgency in his optics. "_Whatever they do to me, do not tell them anything!_" he beeped. Raf nodded.

"What will they do to you?" he asked, his voice low an shaking a little.

"_Who knows? They have many methods of torture. Electrocution, swords through the protoform or doorwings, and sometimes even... spark rape._" His voice lowered towards the end, and he warbled sadly.

Raf's eyes widened, vaguely knowing about what 'Bee was referencing. Sparks merging could create pleasure... or pain if it was forceful. "That's terrible," he whispered.

'Bee ducked his head. "_I know. But as long as they are harming me, don't give away anything! Promise me that._"

The boy could do nothing but nod, partway in shock. "I promise."

Knockout walked back in at that moment. His optics roamed the room before landing on the pair, and the smirk returned at full force. "Time for some fun."

Raf had to stop himself from yelling at the red 'con, cursing vehemently with the various cybertronian swear words he'd picked up from Ratchet.

Knockout had the shock prod in one, clawed servo, sparking and aimed at a spot on Bumblebee's chest. The medic's face was illuminated with the unearthly light, making him appear even more evil than normal. "Where is your base?"

Rafael could practically hear Bumblebee's logic center whirling away with this new information. So the 'cons were after their base again? _But that doesn't explain why,_ Raf thought.

Bumblebee stubbornly remained mute, refusing to answer the simple question.

"Talk!" Knockout growled, shoving the prod between to pieces of armor plating.

A high-pitched whir escaped Bumblebee before he could help it, and he writhed underneath the force of the electricity. It was a much higher voltage than the stasis cuffs had been. The scout wondered how long he could hold out against the weapon.

Then Knockout pulled back, withdrawing the painful tool. 'Bee sagged unintentionally, his self-repair systems struggling to renew his battle computer, which had shut down from the unexpected force. The evil medic gave him one moment before saying, "Still not gonna talk, hm?"

The rod was inserted back into Bumblebee's armor, and the torture continued.

-oOo-

He fell in and out of consciousness, not quite sure when he was actually online. The blackness would extend for long periods of time, and his processor wouldn't register when it was gone.

The Pain was always present, too. Even when everything around him was always black, there were always traces of the predator, Pain, lurking just outside his reach. He fought to stay away from the dreaded enemy, but he always fell back into the hands of Pain.

He was starting to think he'd be floating in the blackness for the rest of his days when his savior came. It was in the form of a voice, and the three words it said drew him out of the darkness and safely through Pain's clutches.

"Bumblebee, wake up!"

-oOo-

His optics snapped open to reveal the same cell as before. Th only difference was that Rafael was in a cage on the floor, rather than hanging from his wrists like Bumblebee.

The mech's frame was aching, but it was an improvement from the feeling of being on fire from the electricity. He quickly checked his systems to see how long he'd been out, only to find that his internal clock, along with his battle computer, was completely offline. His command cortex was working at half-power, still being repaired by his self-repair systems. His processor was alerting him of the cortex's crash. It had been severe enough to knock him unconscious for a few days, undoubtedly. 'Bee figured he'd be fine after a few earth days. Provided Knockout didn't crash it again, of course.

'Bee could picture Ratchet yelling at him and ranting about how dangerous it was to let one's command cortex crash. Which made sense, considering that it regulated all actions, involuntary and otherwise.

Rafael's voice interrupted his thoughts. "Bumblebee? Are you okay?"

The mech looked over at the boy, a response slow in coming. It proved just how slowly his cortex was functioning. "_Yeah. My command cortex crashed, but I should be okay._"

Raf nodded, still concerned for his friend's safety.

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**A/N: No, I'm not going to raise the rating to M or have BB spark raped, because I don't want to write that.**


	9. Chapter 9

**WARNING: Mentions of gory death.**

* * *

Jazz crawled across the ceiling, adjusting the magnetic grip on his pedes. A security screen just underneath him showed the inside of the cell that was currently occupied by his two comrades.

He quickly checked his paint job to make sure it matched the murky gray ceiling's exact hue. Just in time, too, as three vehicons walked underneath him. None of them stopped to gawk at the monitor.

The saboteur checked the screen again, only to see that Knockout had entered the dim cell. The screen had noise accompanying it, and Jazz turned up his audio's sensitivity to hear.

"Ready for round two, bug?"

Bumblebee's doorwings flared defensively, and Raf's face had a fearful look on it. The boy looked like he wanted to run for it, but the kid was in a cage on the floor, and not exactly in a position to run without smacking into the bars.

"You already know what I want to know. So you can either tell me the answer, or you can suffer another command cortex crash."

Jazz's optics widened. Bumblebee's cortex had crashed? That wasn't good. Depending on the severity of the crash, and mech could go offline if he suffered a cortex failure.

The rest of the interrogation consisted of 'Bee being shocked back into stasis, and Knockout smirking. The red 'con scared Rafael with some idle threats, but left the teen alone.

Slinking back down the darkened hallway, Jazz crawled into an air vent right as the Pitmaster himself walked past. He was followed closely by a groveling Starscream and an indifferent Shockwave. As usual, Starscream was trying to appease his master about something.

Nothing they said was of importance, but Jazz recorded the conversation anyways. The autobots needed any help they could get from the decepticon's apparent lack of security. Then the spy hunkered down, preparing to recharge in the enemy base. It wasn't like he could get out at the moment. Ratchet was preparing a ground bridge to get him out tomorrow, once Smokescreen told the medic, of course.

Falling into a light stasis, Jazz grinned to himself as he imagined what Ratchet would say to him.

-oOo-

He awoke the next morning to a ship that seemed to quiet to be normal. It was a warship, for Primus' sake. Where were the troops marching and training? Where were the fights that undoubtedly broke out in the halls?

His scanners reported that nothing had happened while he'd been in recharge, but he quickly checked himself over for any visible spyware just in case. Coming up clean, the spy quickly renewed his camouflage tech and crawled out of the vent, clinging to the ceiling. He inched forward, making sure that his spark signature was shielded and his autobot locator beacon was offline.

He quickly started to record what he was seeing as he watched the same screen from the day before. It depicted a slumbering Rafael. Bumblebee, however, was online and glancing around, as though he could sense something was wrong.

Jazz had to wait a while for Knockout to come and begin the next interrogation. While he was waiting, the saboteur was forced to seek better shelter as the ship's crew began to online for the day. He narrowly missed detection a few times, but that was nothing new to Jazz. And then Knockout finally made his grand appearance.

The torture session was as generic as any other, only it ended a lot differently.

Once the medic had deemed that the session was over, he said, "Well, it looks like the two of you are of no more use to use." He grinned. "See you in the afterlife!" And with that, the medic shoved his shock prod as close to Bumblebee's spark chamber as he could. Raf, who had woken up and Knockout's entrance, watched on in horror. The mech convulsed, fighting to stay online.

After a half-breem of continuous electrocution, Bumblebee's optics went dark and his frame fell limp. Knockout left the prod in, sending dancing sparks over the yellow mech's frame and lighting it up in the most deadly ways. The medic scanned 'Bee and muttered to himself. A single tear rolled down Rafael's cheek.

"Battle computer's offline, logic center is down... Ah, there we go. Cortex is offlining... and he's down for the count!" He pulled the weapon away, sounding smug. If it were possible, 'Bee went even limper.

Jazz shuttered his optics in disbelief. His comrade was... dead?! He barely managed to stay hanging on the ceiling as his magnetic grips almost gave way.

Knockout turned to face Rafael, who was openly sobbing now. "How could you? You.. you monster!" The child sobbed.

Jazz had a distinct feeling that he knew what Knockout was about to do, but he couldn't tear his optics away from the screen, or move his body at all. It was all he could do to keep himself hanging onto the ceiling.

"Oh, it was easy!" Knockout grinned. "As easy as this!" The cherry-red 'con wrapped a servo around Raf's chest and the other around his legs. The look of fear of the teen's face broke Jazz's spark. Then Knockout violently ripped the child in half.

Jazz recoiled, trying desperately not to purge. He felt completely numb. The 'cons were even more evil than he'd perceived in the first place. Who could do that to an innocent human, a mere child in their eyes, and not feel the deepest remorse?

He left the monitor and retreated down the hall, his frame running on automatic as he shut off the recording program. He was trying to find a vacant place where he could call Ratchet and get back to base before the shock wore off and was replaced by anger, because deep down, the spy knew he would end up doing something he'd regret.

The ship was still eerily quiet, but several vehicons were moving around, carrying out basic maintenance duties. Jazz snuck over them, being as silent as he possibly could. A door on his left opened, and the mech passes over the top of several trooper's helms.

Checking to make sure the room was indeed empty, Jazz dropped down to the ground once the door had firmly shut. Surveying his surrounding, the mech could tell that it was some sort of berthroom, designed to sleep several dozen vehicons in close quarters.

**.:Ratch? Ah need a 'bridge. Quick.:. -Jazz**

He winced at how dismayed his voice sounded, even over the comm. link.

**.:Jazz? Where are you?:. -Ratchet**

**.:'Con warship. Hurry.:. -Jazz**

He onlined his locator beacon so Ratchet would know where to set the coordinates. The swirling green vortex opened up, and Jazz hurried through before any 'cons could walk in on him.

The autobot base's interior replaced the gloomy insides of the decepticon warship, and Jazz was quickly confronted by an angry medic.

"What were you doing in the decepticon warship?! Do you have any idea how dangerous that is?!"

Ignoring the orange mech, Jazz turned to Smokescreen, who was waiting for the verdict anxiously.

In short, clipped words, Jazz said, "'Bee and Raf are dead."

-oOo-

"Lord Megatron," Starscream said, approaching the front deck of the ship and bowing quickly. "Soundwave reports that the autobot spy is no longer on board."

"And did he fall for our little trick with the holoforms being offlined?" the warlord asked, turning from the monitor with his hands clasped behind his back.

"Yes, he did," Starscream smirked. "He ran home to tell his little friends of their supposed fate."

Megatron chuckled darkly. "Excellent. Tell Knockout to interrogate them again, and this time, try the child. He might crack faster than the autobot scout. It is nearly time to begin phase two of my little plan. The autobots will never see it coming."

* * *

**A/N: They aren't actually dead, just in case you missed that.**


	10. Chapter 10

Everyone reacted to the loss of their two teammates a little differently. Smokescreen took out his sorrow and frustration on some boulders, reducing them to mere piles of rubble. Arcee, Bulkhead, and Ironhide sat silently in disbelieving shock while Miko cried her eyes out. Mirage, Hound, and Prowl had gone out for a drive to clear their processors. Optimus and Ultra Magnus had retreated to their personal quarters, doing Primus only knows what.

Jazz sat on a large metal container, with his helm in his servos. The horrible images of Bumblebee become a limp rag doll, as the humans said, and Rafael's eyes losing their light as his body was torn apart were replaying in his processor. The spy had shown the others the recordings he'd gotten while he'd shuttered his optics, unable to witness the tragedy again.

He'd told Miko to not watch, but the rebellious girl had disregarded his words and peeked around the corner. This had become evident when she'd screamed at Raf's gory ending. Bulkhead had gone to comfort her while the Prime had questioned Jazz, wanting to know what the decepticons were after, exactly.

The spy had bowed his helm as he'd said that he didn't know, and he'd retreated to the metal container that served as his chair shortly after. The mech hadn't moved since.

Feeling a hand on his shoulder, Jazz slowly lifted his head to see Ratchet, looking concerned.

"This wasn't your fault," the medic said quietly.

"Yes it was. Ah didn' do anythin' ta help," Jazz mumbled.

"What could you have done? You were outnumbered five hundred to one!" Ratchet's voice increased a little in volume.

"So?" Jazz snapped, jumping up. "Ah coulda grabbed Raf b'fo'e 'e died! Ah coulda killed Knockout! Ah coulda-"

"Jazz! You are only one mech! You can't do everything!" Ratchet interrupted, sounding more like his usual, impatient self.

The two of them were well aware that their arguing was attracting everyone's attention, as well as Prowl's gaze, who had just driven in. But Jazz didn't care. "That's mah point, Ratch! Ah didn' do _anythin'!_"

The mech stalked off, his frame rigid with anger. He left Ratchet in the main room, oblivious to the medic's conflicting emotions. Ratchet made to follow Jazz, but Prowl stopped him with a light touch to the arm and saying, "Let me go talk to him."

Ratchet wearily nodded and turned back to his computer console, and Prowl shot Bulkhead, Arcee, and Ironhide a look that said "I'll handle this."

He found the saboteur in their shared quarters, due to the lack of available rooms in the hangers. Jazz was on his berth, curled up in a ball with his visor hiding his optics, but Prowl could sense that they were unfocused, and Jazz was still in a numb-shock state.

"Is everything alright?" the usually stoic mech asked softly. "I heard arguing."

"Eve'ythin' is jus' fine, Prowler. Ah only lost two friends ta-day," Jazz said bitterly.

"You don't have to use that tone with me, Jazz. I was just asking. And they were my friends, too."

Ignoring Prowl's words, Jazz said, "Don' ya know wha' it feels like? Ta look at a mech or femme an' have the oppo'tunity ta save 'em, and then jus' stand by an' watch? And then knowin' yo'r responsible fo' their death." He sounded like he was talking to himself, but Prowl frowned.

Images of sending soldiers out to the front lines on Cybertron, knowing they were likely to never come back, flashed through Prowl's processor. He could feel the sorrow that he'd suppressed all those years ago resurfacing as the guilt came back. He knew he was responsible for the deaths. He had been head of the tactical command, and in charge of the planning and dividing the soldier's tasks.

"Yes, Jazz. I do know what that feels like." Prowl turned and walked out the door. Jazz mentally slapped himself, recalling the same memories that Prowl had.

"No- Prowl! Ah'm sorry." Jazz's voice faded to silence. The Praxian turned while he was standing in the doorway and offered Jazz a tiny smile.

"It's alright, Jazz." Then he was gone.

Jazz sighed and rolled over onto his back, staring up at the ceiling.

-oOo-

Bumblebee online rather quickly, getting used to the never-ending processor ache and security bypasses. Checking on Rafael's condition was more important to him than his own safety.

If his chronometer was working, Bumblebee would have checked how long they'd been in captivity. But his self repair systems were struggling to keep his command cortex functioning above seventy-five percent. He knew it was hard on his systems, but 'Bee didn't have a choice. What were the chances that Knockout would repair him? Not that he wanted that creepy 'con digging around in his internals in the first place.

Rafael began to stir then, catching the yellow mech's attention. The boy opened his eyes and rubbed at them to clear away the sleepiness. Then he stretched and stood up from the floor of his cage. He caught sight of his guardian watching him and offered a small smile.

"What do you think they're going to do to us today?" Raf asked, right as his stomach growled. The 'cons had given him a few stolen granola bars when he'd mentioned that humans needed sustenance, but that seemed like hours ago.

'Bee eyed the boy, wishing he had something for his friend to eat. "_I don't know. But I hope the others will come for us soon._"

A rumbling laugh filled the chamber, making Bumblebee's doorwings twitch and Rafael jump. Megatron stepped into the light, and the boy shrank down a bit. 'Bee flared his doorwings to appear more threatening. Not that Megatron seemed to care.

"Your little friends are not going to come looking for you again," he smirked, his voice rumbling a lot like Optimus' would, but lacking the kindness.

"A-again?" Rafael asked tentatively. The warlord looked over him appraising, as though sizing him up.

"Your little spy friend, Jazz, was on board yesterday. He got this footage, and now your entire team believes you two are dead." Megatron opened one hand, palm-up, and a small hologram projector activated. It played a scene of Bumblebee's life force fading and then Raf being torn in two. By the end of the short video, Raf's jaw was hanging open and he had to turn away in disgust. No one wanted to see themselves dying in such a realistic manner.

Megatron grinned at his two prisoners' expressions. "Now that you have something to think about, I have other matters that need to be attended to." Then the ex-gladiator took his leave.

Turning to his guardian, Rafael saw the look of anger written all over his faceplates. "That couldn't be real, right?" he asked in a small voice.

'Bee shook his head furiously. "_No. Megatron is just bluffing. Prime would never believe something like that._"

* * *

**A/N: Love? Hate? Review!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: Thanks to all the reviews, followers, and favorites!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own transformers.**

* * *

Three days later (according to Knockout), Bumblebee's resolve had begun to waver. There had been no explosions or fights that would signify a rescue team. And the continues shocking sessions hadn't turned up anything for the 'cons, much to Knockout's displeasure.

He entered the cell again, an obvious scratch in his usually flawless finish. He was muttering to himself about how impatient Megatron was. The shock prod was being toted in his arms, looking as deadly as it had every time before.

Bumblebee watched the medic closely. "_Why do you bother with this anymore? You know I'm not gonna tell you anything._"

The 'con glared at 'Bee. "Well, today we are going to try something new." He gave a crooked smirk and opened Rafael's cage. Then he grabbed the boy in a clawed servo before he could try to run away. Then Raf was hung up next to Bumblebee, making the mech's optics widen. Raf looked scared.

"Where is your base?" Knockout asked impatiently, activating the shock prod and hovering it inches in front of Raf's face.

'Bee had to give the kid credit, because he visibly swallowed his fear and said, "I'll never tell you."

Knockout tutted, and let the prod barely skim the surface of Raf's stomach. The boy gritted his teeth as the electricity danced through his bones, but he forced himself to not cry out.

Bumblebee winced as Raf convulsed. The mech waited only a moment longer before saying, "No! Stop! I'll tell you, just don't hurt him!"

Knockout arched an optic ridge, but withdrew the rod. "You will tell me?"

'Bee nodded. "Just don't hurt Raf!"

"Finally! You autobots are too soft," Knockout said, dropping the prod rather roughly. 'Bee spared a quick glance at Rafael, who looked rather pale. But Knockout interrupted Bumblebee by asking, "Alright, where is it?"

The yellow mech stared at the medic, who looked somewhat tired, but a bit excited to finally be harvesting the fruits of his labor. Bumblebee sighed, but rattled off the coordinates, knowing Raf's safety was on the line.

Knockout shook his helm in disbelief. "Your team is still in Jasper? Lord Megatron checked there!"

"It's c-called shield...ing," Raf mumbled, looking worse for the wear.

The 'con rolled his optics. "Whatever. I need to go speak to Lord Megatron now. So enjoy yourselves!" he cackled. Before he left, he tossed Raf back into his cage. The boy winced as his abused body came in contact with the ground.

Once the medic had left, Bumblebee whirred unhappily. "_I'm sorry, Raf!_" he chirped, doorwings trembling. "_If I had known they were going to hurt you..._"

"It's f-fine, 'Bee. Y-you shouldn't..have t-told them," the boy stuttered, wrapping his arms around his suddenly shaking body.

"_They were hurting you! Human bodies can't take that amount of electricity going through them at once. He would have killed you._" His doorwings dropped at the thought.

"Well we're s-still alive. D-don't worry," Rafael replied, trying to sound strong.

Bumblebee gave a small smile at the boy's courage.

-oOo-

Knockout practically ran to the bridge of the warship, narrowly avoiding several vehicons. He'd yelled "Hey! Watch the finish!" a couple times already, disregarding the scratch his lord had given him that he still needed to buff out. Megatron had been waiting for the coordinates of the autobot base for a while now.

"My lord!" he yelled, his voice ringing through the command center. "They've given up the location of their base!"

Megatron, who was in some sort of scientific conversation with Shockwave, turned at the news. "Excellent! Soundwave, obtain the coordinates from our dear medic and prepare to open a ground bridge." Then the warlord placed a servo to his helm, activating a public comm. "Starscream, ready your armada and meet me at the bridge."

He turned back to the mechs assembled. "It's time to end this little game once and for all."

-oOo-

Miko let Raf's mother cling to her and cry, mourning the loss of her youngest son. Fowler had just delivered the news, and then departed swiftly, offering his apologies and saying he had a meeting to attend. Miko knew he just didn't want to see the woman cry and possibly break into tears himself.

Miko herself was missing her friend, but she was too numb to cry for the time being.

Rafael's mother had been informed that her son was missing, but not that he'd been kidnapped by 'cons. And now she knew he was deceased, but Fowler wouldn't let her see the footage, saying it was highly classified and claiming it was too gory for the woman to see. She believed him, and hadn't asked again.

Back at base, the Japanese girl stared blankly at the screen, wondering why playing the racing game on one player was so much more boring than two. The words "YOU WIN" flashed over and over on the screen. She sighed and dropped the controller.

She stood up and looked around, wondering what she could do to keep her mind off of 'Bee and Raf. She'd offered to go dune bashing with Bulkhead, but he had to go on a patrol, leaving her stuck at base, bored. She sighed again.

"'Ey, kid," a gruff voice said, making her turn. Even standing on the elevated platform, she had to partially crane her neck to see Ironhide's face. "Ah know this is more ah yer and Bulkhead's thin', but Ah got nuthin' else ta do. Wanna go dune bashin'?"

She perked up a little. "Sure. Do you like the slash monkeys?"

He shook his head. "Nah. But Ah'll go fer some nice hard rock instead."

Miko shrugged. "Okay." She climbed down the ladder and started to head for the red mech when the whine of jet engines reached her ears. She stopped in her tracks and cocked her head to one side. Jasper didn't have its own airport, so planes rarely came through, if ever.

"Optimus! Incoming!" Ratchet yelled. The Prime looked up at the medic, and unspoken words passed between them. Ratchet's yell attracted Hound, Mirage, and Jazz to the main room, making it feel rather cramped.

The engine noise increased, accompanied by the shrill whistle of something else.

"Missile! Everyone take cover!"

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for the shortness.**


	12. Chapter 12

**Disclaimer: I don't own transformers.**

* * *

Miko instinctively covered her head with her arms, and Ironhide knelt, using his chassis to cover the human girl.

The missile struck the roof, creating a large explosion. Pieces of the roof were incinerated on contact, and others obeying the will of gravity, crashing to the floor. A gray, intangible dome suddenly surrounded the group of ten autobots. Miko gazed up right as Ironhide started to look around. Hound and Mirage looked a bit preoccupied and strained. Prowl ushered the group together, and the force field shrunk to accommodate them. The two straining mechs relaxed a little as the cover shrunk.

"What are they doing?" asked Miko quietly.

Ironhide looked down at her. "Hound has high-tech holoformatic technology. So he's usin' it ta keep that rubble from hittin' us. Mirage, as 'is mate, is usin' 'is energy ta help keep it up."

"They are also making the outside of it depict us offline," Prowl added, keeping his voice low. "Whoever bombed the base obviously wanted us dead."

Miko nodded. It made sense. But from the look on Hound's face, keeping the holoform up and solid enough to prevent debris from getting through was requiring a lot of his strength. Then a tense silence fell and extended for a period of time. The Japanese girl looked around anxiously, wondering if the 'cons had left. No jet engines could be heard, but that didn't tell them anything. If they had landed and intended to scout through the wreckage, the 'bots would be out of luck.

"Are they gone?" she asked quietly. A moment later, Prowl nodded at her.

"I do not detect any spark signatures or locator beacons. They must have left."

Ratchet gently placed a servo on Hound's shoulder. The autobot and his mate slowly relaxed as the domed shield faded and the blue sky came back into view.

The warehouse around them was completely destroyed, apart from a few still-standing support beams. Piles of random junk were scattered around, and the TV and game system had been reduced to charcoal. Ratchet was mourning over the loss of his computer console (Miko rolled her eyes), and Optimus was gazing around, looking who knew what.

Hound sagged as the ends of the holoform disappeared, and Mirage gently caught his mate.

"No, no," Hound said, waving him off. "'M okay. 'M fine." Mirage gave his mate a worried look, but backed off a bit.

The sound of a powerful engine caught everyone's attention, and Jazz morphed one of his servos into a small blaster. Miko tensed. But then Bulkhead came into view, with Agent Fowler in the passenger seat. The wrecker hit the brakes to avoid slamming into fallen rubble and Fowler climbed out. Miko ran over to her guardian and he scooped her up once he'd transformed. She was transferred to her usual seat on his shoulder.

"What happened?" asked the green mech. "I thought you were all dead by the looks of that explosion."

"'Cons are what happened," Ratchet said grumpily. "But no, no one is dead." He started digging around in the wreckage, looking for any medical tools that survived.

"Where are we gonna hide out now?" asked Smokescreen.

"I'll contact my boys at the Pentagon. But they aren't gonna be too happy if we keep blowin' up all their warehouses," Fowler said.

"We need to find someplace to stay for now," Optimus announced. "Standing in the open is not our best choice."

A slight creaking noise made Miko look around. Hound was leaning on one of the support beams A sizable piece of concrete was balanced precariously on the top, beginning to lean...

"Hound! Look out!" Miko yelled right as it fell. The mech had a split second to look up, and it would have fallen right on top of him had Mirage not shoved him out of harm's way.

By saving his mate, Mirage had sacrificed himself. The debris fell on top of the noble, breaking and denting his chassis.

"Mirage!" Hound croaked, crouching down to see his sparkmate. Energon was slowly leaking from the blue mech, staining the ground a glowing blue.

Ratchet ran to the fallen mech's side, wielding a wrench and a slightly dented welder that he'd found. Ratchet lifted the concrete off, tossing it aside. He attempted to repair Mirage, but the leaking 'bot stopped him.

"Don't bother," Mirage said weakly. "I don't have the strength to continue."

Ratchet bowed his helm sadly, but gave the two a bit of space.

"Optimus," the blue mech spoke up quietly. "It's been an honor serving with you."

"That it was, old friend," Optimus replied, unwilling to invade the bonded's personal space. Then Mirage turned back to his mate.

"Hound, whatever happens, don't give up. Fight, make me proud. I will see you in the Well of Allsparks."

"No! Mirage, don't leave me," Hound pleaded. He leaned in closer, and the two shared a few, quiet words that Miko didn't catch.

She saw Mirage shutter his optics, his face betraying the pain he was in. Hound gripped at his chestplates, where Miko knew that his spark was hidden.

Mirage slowly relaxed as his life force faded, and Hound's face contorted in pain the further away Mirage left. Then the Jeep doubled over as 'Raj went limp, his spark aching as the bond between it and its mate's spark shattered.

Optimus allowed Hound a moment to recover before gently lifting Mirage's now-empty frame off the ground. The scout clutched at his mate's lifeless hand.

"Come. We need to find cover."

Slightly worked up at watching a 'bot die, Miko noted the heartbroken look on Hound's face as he clutched at his chest and watched his deceased mate being carried away by Optimus.

-oOo-

Bumblebee sagged. The guilt of betraying his friends' location had caught up to him. He shuttered his optics, welcoming the darkness. The Urbana was ready to sink back into a nice recharge when the door opened with a bang.

Knockout stepped into the room, his scratch mysteriously gone. 'Bee knew that the vain 'con had buffed it out. He smirked and flicked at something at the wall. 'Bee shuttered his optics at the sudden flare of light. After however long of being in the dark, the light source was a torture in itself.

The light woke Raf, who immediately covered his eyes. "Whatzgoinon?" he mumbled incoherently.

"Lord Megatron wants you to witness this. Keep a record of it, he says." Knockout pressed another button and a feed started to play through a computer terminal that neither of them had noticed in the dim light.

It was an aerial view of the desert-scape surrounding Jasper, and Bumblebee's optics widened. _What are they going to do...? _he wondered with horror.

Then the warehouse that served as the base came into view, and Raf's eyes widened as he realized what they were going to do.

"This is a live feed," Knockout said excitedly. 'Bee looked at him in disgust. How anyone could be excited about the destruction of another of their race was beyond him.

'Bee never really was one for praying, but as the nano-kliks ticked by, he found himself praying to Primus for the safety of his teammates. Despite his desperate pleading, the inevitable missile separated from whoever was carrying the camera and sped towards the base, going faster than the eradicons. It found its target, much to 'Bee and Raf's horror. A large explosion rocked the land, making the camera's view get blocked out by smoke. They circled around the wreckage, and as the smoke cleared, they could see the inside of the base. The roof had collapsed and the walls were in pieces. The frames of their friends were scattered around, broken and battered. Energon stained the floor, and most of the base was reduced to rubble, scattered around in random assortments.

As the fliers flew over rather low, Rafael could see Miko's body, the pink hair revealing who it was. She was half covered by broken concrete. He blinked away tears, but they kept coming anyways as the camera panned around to Ratchet, Arcee, and Hound. Then Smokescreen, Mirage, and Ironhide. Jazz, Prowl, and Ultra Magnus came next, followed by Bulkhead. Optimus was the last on to be shown, his once-proud helm bowed in a deathly sorrow. Rafael closed his eyes, tears flowing freely now.

Bumblebee was mentally freaking out, but his command cortex had cut off signal relays to his frame to keep him frozen until he got his emotions back under control. Energon tears were falling thickly from his optics.

_What have I done?_

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry, Mirage!**


	13. Chapter 13

Bumblebee wished he could have gone offline with the rest of his teammates. He was now responsible for the deaths of eleven autobots. He felt terrible, worse than slag.

Raf knew that his guardian was mentally beating himself up, but nothing the boy said successfully snapped him out of it. He wished there was something he could do, and he felt equally responsible for the team's destruction. He'd been weak enough to be hurt by Knockout's shock prod, and Bumblebee had had to save him. Again. Curse his pathetic, fleshy body.

The two ranted inside their heads, doing nothing but making themselves feel worse and worse. But neither of them knew that Megatron was taking a secret pleasure in watching them suffer.

The warlord smirked. He'd been planning on exterminating them after he'd disposed of team prime, but now he was reconsidering. Maybe they could serve another purpose, but had yet to figure one out. Maybe they could be kept on display, like the flesh-bags had in zoos. After he'd taken over Earth, they would be the last surviving autobot and human. But since the other autobots were gone, he'd have all the time in the world. So it wouldn't hurt for them to remain in the brig for a while longer while he figured out a use for them. Besides, then he could watch them torture themselves.

-oOo-

Rafael floated in and out of consciousness, vaguely wondering why Megatron was keeping them alive. He felt useless, merely a decoration hanging from the ceiling. A puppet for the warlord's every whim. Sleeping was his main hobby, seeing as he had nothing else to do.

The guilt of his friends being nothing more than rusting, empty husks was also taking its toll. From the way Ratchet has always talked, Bumblebee was now the sole remaining autobot in the universe, apart from maybe Wheeljack. But nobody had heard from the wrecker in a year, and nobody knew where he was.

And of course, being locked in the Nemesis, they had no way to contact Jackie. Not fully conscious, Raf drifted back into a fitful sleep.

-oOo-

Smokescreen found himself pacing more and more as the days passed. The decepticons hadn't made another move since then, proving that they thought the autobots were permanently offline. The rookie looked over at Hound, who was sitting on the floor with his optics offline.

The loss of his mate had hit him hard, and Smokescreen knew that his spark was searching for the bond that had linked him to Mirage. But it was encountering nothing but empty space, and causing Hound pain. Smokescreen wondered how much longer Hound would be able to hold out for. Usually when a Cybertronian's mate died, the remaining 'bot followed shortly after. But so far, the scout was holding on.

Jazz was also mourning for Mirage, but in his own way. The two had been somewhat close back on Cybertron, during the first days of the war. He was listening to various styles of earth music very loudly. Ironhide had already snapped at the saboteur a couple times about the music, and Jazz's only response was to turn it up louder.

Smokescreen knew the spy was still blaming himself for the demise of the two youngest members, and mourning for Mirage wasn't exactly helping. But Smokescreen didn't know what to say to the spy, so he remained silent.

Jazz suddenly turned off his music, making both Smokescreen and Ironhide look over at him.

"Ya know wha' Ah jus' realized?" Jazz asked, looking a bit surprised. "It took the 'cons th'ee days ta attack us aft'ah 'e got the coo'dinates from 'Bee. Megsy woulda never known where we were. But why wait th'ee days?"

"So we wouldn't be expecting it?" Smokescreen asked, slightly confused at where Jazz was going.

"Nah, it's not like Megatron ta wait fer somethin' like that," Ironhide said, a look of realization dawning on his faceplates.

"Guys? I don't follow," Smokescreen said, looking between the two.

"He's gotta be plannin' somethin' else," Ironhide vaguely cleared.

"'E is the master o' schemes," Jazz snorted. "Even though they don' always wo'k."

"So what are you suggesting we do?" asked Smokescreen. By now, all the other autobots and Miko had filtered into the room of their makeshift base. No conversations had lasted this long since Mirage's death and the base's demise.

"Ah dunno," Jazz shrugged. "Ah'm not the one in cha'ge. But that's jus' what Ah've noticed."

Smokescreen started to pace again, mulling over what the two had said.

"We need to rest, and get our strength back," Ratchet put in, drawing the rookie's attention back to the group. "I have very few tools for repairing and we're low on energon."

Smokescreen shook his helm and stopped moving again. "No. This game of 'cat and mouse' has gone on for too long now. We barely defeated them at Darkmount, and we can't hold out forever. Every day our number dwindle. How long until we're back in the single digits? They always have two vehicons to replace every one we take down." He paused for a moment, mentally pulling himself together and searching for what to say next. His voice lowered. "I lost a brother the day we lost Bumblebee. It is pointless and agonizing to watch 'bots die and not move this war further forward. How many more are going to have to die in vain before we make a move? I say we strike now, while they aren't expecting it, and end this war."

Silence followed for a moment, and then the assembled 'bots began to clap. Optimus boomed, "Spoken like a true Prime."

Smokescreen ducked his helm and mumbled, "Thanks."

"Smokescreen? A Prime?" Bulkhead asked. The rookie leveled a glare at the green wrecker.

"Yes," Optimus said, making Ratchet look at his leader skeptically. "Six years ago, Smokescreen brought me the Forge of Solas Prime in my time of need. The matrix told me that he had the makings of a Prime, and I have been training him ever since."

"And you didn't tell us this why?" Arcee asked, slightly hurt.

With a small smile, Optimus asked, "Would you have believed me before his speech?"

Ultra Magnus chuckled. "I remember when Sentinel Prime took you on as his trainee. Smokescreen seems to be handling the news quite well." Optimus gave another tiny smile.

"Let's get this show on the road," Smokescreen interrupted, pulling everyone's attention back to the task at hand.

Hound pushed himself off the floor, wincing at the slight pain. "For Mirage," he rasped.

Arcee nodded. "For Tailgate and Cliffjumper."

"For Seaspray and Perceptor," Bulkhead added.

"For Sideswipe and Sunstreaker," Ironhide said.

"For Blaster," Jazz put in.

"For Kup and Hot Rod," Ultra Magnus listed.

"For Bluestreak and Blurr," Prowl replied.

"For Red Alert and Inferno," Ratchet monotoned.

"For Bumblebee," Smokescreen said determinedly.

"For Raf!" Miko interjected.

"And for every other autobot who was lost to the cause," Optimus finished. "Autobots, roll out!"

* * *

**A/N: My favorite chapter so far!**


End file.
